Secrets and Lies: Chapter 12
The street that the Mori Detective Office resided was filled with vehicles all clustered around the office like flies around a light. There was an ambulance, a fire engine and several other cars. Heiji and Conan added to the traffic jam by pulling up in a taxi. Conan had briefed Heiji on the way there and had warned him not to get too emotional as he had learnt himself that emotions can cloud your judgement.
Heiji was very concerned about Kazuha's safety and Conan was worried about Ran. If the Black Organisation only wanted to kidnap Kogoro Mori, what would Gin and Vodka be ordered to do with the extra baggage? Somehow he couldn't see Gin dragging the old man off blindfolded and leaving the two girls behind to call the Police. Or if he left them behind he would probably torch the place which might have actually happened as the fire department were present. Conan was prepared for the worst news possible.
As they approached the agency they could see Jodie Starling standing by the entrance to the cafe talking to a man dressed in black protective clothing with reflective stripes. Presumably a fireman, Conan thought to himself. The two detectives ran over to her, ready to hear the all the details of what had happened even if it meant hearing that the people that they cared about were dead. Heiji swore to himself that if Kazuha was indeed dead as he feared that he wouldn't rest until he hunted down her killer despite how dangerous it would be.
"Did you get here in time?" Conan questioned her with a pit of dread boiling in his stomach.
Jodie shook her head slowly, she had rushed some agents over there and had broken speed limits, but they still hadn't got there in time. "By the time we arrived here They had gone. And the office was on fire, presumably to eradicate evidence."
"D-did They leave anyone behind? The target was Kogoro Mori so taking the girls wouldn't have been necessary."
Jodie brightened slightly and then she remembered that state which they had found the office in and her brief smile faded. "The Organisation took Kogoro Mori and Ran-kun. We have a witness statement saying that the two were seen being dragged into a van by two men in black. The van was black and unmarked."
"So Kazuha was left behind," Heiji said feeling a little happier despite the obvious implications of Kogoro Mori being in the hands of Black Organisation. "Can I see her?"
Conan saw the look that had briefly flashed on Jodie's face, he knew what she was about to say. They wouldn't have left Kazuha behind unless They were sure she couldn't tell anyone what she saw and the office had been set on fire.
"I'm afraid Toyama-san was shot. One bullet hit her leg and the other shot seems to have missed its target and it hit her gut. After she was shot the office was torched probably to get rid of her body and erase any evidence. Toyama-san managed to crawl to the phone and call the fire department. She was found collapsed next to the open window when they arrived. A remarkable and brave girl."
"Where is she?" Heiji demanded vowing that if she actually had lived then he would tell her that he liked her. He couldn't deny it anymore.
"She's in the ambulance, it's not a pretty sight. She was lying in a pool of her own blood when she was found. The ambulance is about to leave for the hospital. I'll tell them that you are allowed to ride with her to the hospital."
Jodie patted him on the back and they walked of together leaving Conan behind to worry about Ran's fate and the Black Organisation. She had probably been taken for leverage to get Kogoro Mori to tell the truth. That meant she would be kept alive until the old man talked which wouldn't be much as he didn't know anything about the Black Organisation. What would happen after they realised he didn't know anything? Ran and Kogoro Mori were most likely to be killed and their bodies would be efficiently disposed of. What would happen after that? The people around the Mori family would be investigated in detail. His wife would probably come under suspicion as well as him and Hattori. He would have to warn Eri Kisaki and explain to Hattori. Things were getting dangerous and complicated.
Damn it, it was all his fault. He hadn't expected the Black Organisation to move that fast. They didn't seem to want to stay in the shadows so much now as they had been seen and Kazuha was still alive. If that was true then They were getting desperate and would hopefully start making more mistakes that would lead him to Them. His fists were clenched in anger at his own stupidity and at the Black Organisation. If he ever found Ran alive he swore that he would tell her the truth about everything. If he ever found her alive.
The ambulance pulled away with its siren blaring and sped down the road to the nearest hospital. Conan prayed that Kazuha was still alive and fighting too. She had been brave and deserved to live. Maybe Hattori would finally realise his feelings and confess to her. He had a feeling that it would happen by the way that he had run off. It would at the very least cheer both of them up, but right now his priority was Ran and her father. He had to find them as soon as possible. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but he had to.
A shadow of a plan came to him and he grasped desperately at it; it wasn't up to his usual standard. Nevertheless he had to do something. Anything.
He spotted out the corner of his eye that Jodie was walking back towards him. He ran up to her and hoped that he wasn't too late to save her again.
"Jodie-san, how long has it been since the kidnappers left?"
Jodie consulted her notebook for the times. "Well, Toyama-san called the Fire Department at 3:24 which was at least five minutes after They left and that was just over half an hour ago."
"Do you know what the registration of the van is? And which way did it go?"
Jodie flipped forward a few more pages to the witness statement from a customer that had been looking out the window of the café. She couldn't see how he was planning to follow them as so much time had elapsed. It wasn't like he had a helicopter or anything with an aerial view. Then she got it. Hang glider. Kid. "It is 46-62 and it left in that direction," she informed him pointing. "By the way there is a major road closed in that direction and there is only one diversion route. I hear that it is completely blocked with cars and the traffic is moving very slowly."
Conan-kun caught her hint and knew that she must have guessed what he was planning. The bad traffic was his first real piece of luck that day.
"Thanks," he said running off to somewhere quieter so he could make a private phone call.
"Good luck Cool Kid," she called after him.
Once he had found a relatively quiet place he dialled the number for the landline of Hakase's house. He hoped that he could persuade Kuroba to endanger his life for his sake. It was a lot to ask.
"Hello. Agasa residence," said what sounded like Hakase's voice. However Conan wasn't fooled.
"I know it's you Kuroba. I need your help; it's urgent and I'm desperate. Can you use your hang glider to follow a black van with the registration 46-62? It's headed west. Put a disguise on and I'll give you more information once you're out."
"I'll have to ask Jii to meet me and give me my hang glider as soon as possible. I don't have it with me at the moment."
An hour later after being stuck in the traffic jam and going through a vehicle swap the kidnappers parked in front of an abandoned warehouse in the middle of the city. Their only real mishaps so far were getting stuck in traffic and the Mori girl had nearly escaped. Luckily for them she had been subdued with a stun gun.
Kogoro Mori still had a slight headache from his hangover and couldn't quite comprehend what had happened to him. He had been kidnapped by two men in black that he had never seen before and they had shot Ran's friend and torched the office. He knew he was dealing with something serious; he just wished he knew why they wanted him and Ran.
Ran's mind when she had been conscious had been worrying about Kazuha. The man with the long hair had shot her twice and left her in a pool of blood after saying she wasn't needed. She had been forced to watch as Kazuha writhed in pain and the other man began pouring petrol everywhere. After that they had been blindfolded and thrown into a van. Ran had begged them to save Kazuha, but all the people in the back of the van had laughed at her and had blown smoke in her face. When the van had stopped and she was lead out she had blindly kicked and tried to attack the person dragging her blindfolded. She had managed to knock the person to the ground and run a few metres before she was knocked out by someone coming up behind her with a stun gun.
Once the van had parked the two prisoners were taken out the van; Kogoro Mori was lead along with a gun pointed in his back whilst Ran was carried. The interior of the warehouse was completely bare aside from a few metal chairs, a handful of knives and guns and plastic sheeting. The male prisoner was sat on a chair and his handcuffs were unlocked and put on again in order to secure him to the chair. Ran on the other hand was unceremoniously dumped on the floor giving her bruises. She was still unconscious.
When Kogoro Mori's blindfold was whipped off he blinked several times and found himself face to face with his long haired kidnapper. Behind him he could see a woman with a sadistic smile and long blonde hair and a woman that had been introduced to him a while ago as Rena Mizunashi.
I'm going to make Okiya Bourbon because it serves the story better even though I personally think that Okiya is Akai and the Akai with a scar is Bourbon.